Is tongue thrusting really something to worry about with baby teeth? our baby does a fair amount of tongue thrusting, and have read that it can damage baby teeth. i just have a hard time believing that it can do all that much damage though.

How : How old is your baby? 6 months? One year? A little older? Tongue thrust habit in a more mature child with permanent teeth starting to erupt can be problematic by causing the anterior teeth to splay forward and opening his bite. There are ways to treat it in adolescents, not in infants. But right now, i think you should enjoy some terrific times with your baby and worry about this in the future.

The : The habit of thrusting the tongue forwards does produce misalignment of the front teeth and abnormal speech patterns. It is very hard to access how such a habit is going to play out in the child's development in infancy. When you go into have your teeth cleaned have your dentist evaluate the situation, and you might want a pedodontist (children's dentist) to take a look. This might put your mind at rest. Dr neil mcleod dds dentistry that lasts - quality that counts.

Don't worry: Infants explore everything with their mouths. Tongue thrusting is not unusual. Should disappear as the baby teeth erupt. If still present when permanent teeth start to come in, seek counseling with both a speech pathologist and an orthodontist.

Age dependent: Tongue thrusting which is really a retained infantile swallow pattern should not be of concern in the first 4 years of life. Thrusting of the tongue is how a baby nurses, but if continues late into baby tooth dentition or early adult teeth it can cause no end of problems. It will usually go away with development, if causing lack of occlusion (bite) of front teeth, see a certified orthodontist.